Only Kiteboarders go racing at Sail Melbourne

Around 14:00 hrs on Tuesday, the wind peaked on Melbourne’s Port Phillip at 47 knots from the Sou’west and for the rest of the time it averaged 25+ knots. This meant that all racing was abandoned for the Olympic classes in the ISAF World Cup, with an extra race scheduled for both Wednesday and Thursday to catch up. But, for the Kiteboarders racing in the Sail Melbourne event this was just what they were hoping for and they got underway on time at 12:00 hrs.

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Watching the skill of the kiteboarders in the strong conditions, you could see how hard they work to keep it looking smooth. You would think that going back downwind would be easier for them, but this is actually where the real challenge lies, given the power inside the kite.

Germany’s Florian Gruber leads after six races with a string of four, first places. In second is New Zealand’s Torrin Bright and Matthew Taggart of Britain holds down third place.

The women kiteboarders use longer digs to get to the top mark and are slower on the track, as well, so have much longer races before returning to the beach. France’s Ariane Imbert has had three wins and second to stand well clear on the top of the table, with Australia’s Lisa Hickman five points behind her and Marine Sudre a further five points astern, again. No doubt they will all be very tired tonight.